The curiosity of young people is – in most cases – refreshing. Just get started and see what happens. This is exemplified by the use of artificial intelligence (AI). Already 70 per cent of all young people between the ages of 12 and 19 in Switzerland use AI at least occasionally; the older ones more often (86 per cent of 18- to 19-year-olds), the younger ones somewhat less (53 per cent of 12- to 13-year-olds).
The main reason for using AI is to gather information, specifically to help with homework. These figures come from the James Focus study «Artificial Intelligence in the Everyday Lives of Young People» from 2025, which was the first to examine how Swiss young people use AI.
Used incorrectly, AI offers our children an elegant way to be lazy.
Its already widespread use puts pressure on parents and teachers alike. Let's be clear: it's not a question of whether AI will be used, but how we respond to it. How can we support our children in using this new technology, which offers many opportunities but also has numerous dangers and downsides?
How can we ensure that our children are not harmed when they work with ChatGPT or other AI chatbots? Used correctly and with clear guidelines, these tools can certainly promote skills. Used incorrectly, they offer our children an elegant way to be lazy.
Parents should show their children how they can use AI for learning without delegating learning to AI. This would be metacognitive laziness: reducing one's own mental effort and letting AI solve the task. It's like sending your dog out for a jog and thinking you've done something for your own fitness.
How to use AI
There are four different approaches to using artificial intelligence effectively. Parents should practise and try these out together with their children.
1. Research
A supplement to Google search. AI chatbots enable dialogue; clarifications and follow-up questions are part of the research process. However, AI often does not know what is right or wrong. Politically controversial issues are particularly sensitive, and answers must be questioned. When conducting more complex research, children should learn to request sources and to check them. AI chatbots are helpful with words, but facts are of secondary importance to the machine.
2. Socratic dialogue
Here, you provide the AI with your own text and let it ask you critical questions. This creates a reciprocal dialogue that continuously improves the text. Written by you – but with the support of AI.
3. Explainer
For example, if you don't understand a mathematical concept, AI can help. It explains the concept in different ways until you understand it.
4. Creation
The AI creates an image from a text. This teaches children to formulate something precisely or to make corrections if the image does not match their expectations. But there is a major catch with this application: AI works with existing images. The copyright debate remains unresolved to this day, and we AI users are operating in a legal and ethical grey area. Discuss with your child who actually owns such an image.
Support required
Is the rapid advance of artificial intelligence now triggering new parenting conflicts between parents and their teenagers? Many parents shudder at the thought of tough discussions about the use of mobile phones and social media – and that's not even including AI. But at least the use of AI is much less emotionally charged, and most young people are actually surprisingly critical and well aware of the dangers.
However, they also see the personal advantages in a very pragmatic way. A US study (Bickham et al. 2024, Optimism and Uncertainty: How Teens View and Use Artificial Intelligence) even shows that a majority of young people explicitly want clear instructions on how to use these tools. What more could parents wish for?
